Best 9 to 10 Inch Tablets

Our pick for the best 10-inch tablet is the Apple iPad Air 2. It is still one of the thinnest and lightest 10 inch models available and combines amazing performance with a beautiful display. One nice security improvement is the Touch ID fingerprint sensor. The only real downside is price – it is one of the most expensive on our list, so if you want a cheaper option or an Android tablet you should look at other choices.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is the thinnest and lightest 10-inch tablet you can buy. We feel it is the best 10-inch android tablet especially thanks to its brilliantly beautiful AMOLED display which also happens to be the brightest one available. The performance is outstanding – on par with the iPad Air 2 and as good or better than any other Android device. However, the one main drawback is its battery life that averages under 8 hours.

Released in November of 2014, the Google Nexus 9 is our pick for the best 9-inch tablet. It has the latest Nvidia processor, a nice display with 281 ppi, and comes with Andoid 5.0. The one lowlight is the lack of an expansion card slot just like the Nexus 7. Overall, though, we feel the Nexus 9 is a really good value at its price point of $400.

Spec-wise the Sony Xperia Z4 can compete with any other slate including the iPad Air 2 or the Galaxy Tab S2 and is arguably the best Android tablet. It has a stunning display with the most ppi of any 10 inch tablet and it is waterproof. The big problem, however, is that the Xperia Z4 is not available direct to the US market yet. You can buy it through secondary sellers on sites like Amazon, but the price is very high. Also, although Sony claims over 15 hours of battery life, many real-world tests came in around 8 hours and under.

The Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 got upgraded in October of 2014. It now boasts the highest PPI screen you can find in a 9 or 10 inch tablet with 339 pixels per inch. It also is the lightest and has above average battery life. If you consume a lot of media, or if you belong to the Amazon Prime service, then this is great choice for you. As for negatives there is no microSD slot and the apps available are more limited.

The Dell Venue 10 7000 Series is a good, but not great slate that features a bold design with a cylindrical bulge on one end that can attach a keyboard. The display is high-res and sharp, but unfortunately it is not very bright. The overall performance is just decent and the battery life is well below average. For a price that is the same as the top tier models, it just doesn’t quite measure up in terms of value.

With a price of just $179 we believe the best cheap 10-inch tablet is the Lenovo Tab 2 A10. None of the components inside the Tab 2 A10 are going to wow you, but you won’t find better performance or display on a cheaper model. The biggest plus of this unit is the superior battery life of over 13 hours. If you are looking for a budget 10-inch Android tablet then this is the perfect choice for you.

The Amazon Fire HD 10 is Amazon’s low-price 10-inch tablet. It makes finding content easier than ever, especially if you belong to Amazon Prime, but it isn’t the bargain it seems. The display is a low resolution with just 149 ppi. Also the performance is a bit lagging, although when just watching a video it does all right. If you belong to Amazon Prime and just want a tablet to view shows and movies then it is an acceptable choice, but there are better options out there.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A 9.7 is Samsung’s newest cheap 10-inch tablet option. The good includes super long battery life of about 13 hours. The bad is the overall performance which is below average. The ugly is its display which has just 132 ppi and leads to images that often look pixelated.

If you are looking for a Windows 10-inch tablet, then we recommend the Asus Transformer T100 Chi. It won’t blow you away, but it gets the job done for a reasonable price. In this size range and for a decent price it is really difficult to find a Windows model that people seem to like. The Asus Transformer T100 Chi, however, had mostly positive reviews from real users.